


Depth

by Kairyn



Category: The Hobbit - All Media Types, The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings (Movies), The Lord of the Rings - All Media Types, The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Fae hobbits, M/M, Mermaid Legolas, Merpeople Elves, Modern Era, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Other pairings to be added, Sassy Tauriel, Sea Monsters, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-11
Updated: 2017-11-16
Packaged: 2018-08-21 23:27:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 19,585
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8264386
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kairyn/pseuds/Kairyn
Summary: Gimli was never one to sit back and let exploration and adventure pass him by. Even if that took him to the crushing black depths far beneath the sea. How could anyone resist such an unexplored place? And what about the secrets that were hidden there?
 
I was watching far too many documentaries of the worlds oceans...





	1. To The Bottom

**Author's Note:**

> So, like I said, I watch too many ocean documentaries... And I love fish (I have a 125 gallon fish tank I adore). One thing led to another and boom Elves are mermaids now. And because I can hobbits get fairy magic. Surprisingly heavy on biology but definitely needs magic to make it work. Smoothing the way as it were. Never mind that I shouldn't be starting yet another unfinished story but I have no self control. Sorry. Probably will have slower updates because I want these chapters to be a rather bit larger than my usual. (We'll see how long I can manage that)

“Weather sucks for this…” Gimli Durinson commented as he glanced up at the dark gray clouds building up on the horizon. The pure sapphire blue water was steadily growing a steely gray and the surface was chopping up under the wind. They were anchored several hundred miles off shore. A storm this far out could, in theory, be disastrous. They’d have to keep an eye on conditions.

“You were the one that couldn’t wait, brother dear,” Gilid replied as he climbed out of the top of the submersible that was sitting on the very center of the deck. There was a thick metal chain attached between the top of the bright yellow painted submersible and an industrial crane. “By the way, you mess up the controls on **ORI** here I’m gonna put my boot somewhere _very_ unpleasant.” Gilid had been designing and building and fine tuning the sub for decades now. It was his life’s work essentially. Everything was state of the art dwarvish ingenuity. His absolute pride and joy and it was only because of an inner ear problem that he didn’t do the diving in it himself.

Gimli rolled his eyes. “Oh please, Gilid, I think I can handle working a few controls it’s not the first machine I’ve used… and it’s not as if you haven’t explained the damn things to me a thousand times.” He glanced at the sky again before looking at his watch. “We should get a move on. I want to have a few hours and that storm is looking nasty over there.”

“Alright, alright, I’ve finished the system checks and there shouldn’t be a problem. You sure you wanna do a solo dive?” Gilid asked curiously. “I mean really, Dad’s gonna flip if he finds out you’ve taken the sub, much less that you did it without anyone else. Against protocols and all that.”

“Then don’t tell him,” Gimli replied as he climbed up on top of the compact titanium sphere. Reaching over to the side he snagged a thick black robe from where it was draped across the open lid of the submersible. It was always cold on the deep-sea dives and he was planning on pushing the depth limits on **ORI**.

Gilid sighed and slid off his perch on the submersible. “You know you’re crazy right? We’ve never gone to the sea floor before. We’re not even sure if **ORI** will be able to handle the pressure.”

“Well, you built it. Do you think it’ll handle it?”

“I don’t know… maybe. But Gim, the Wizards haven’t even put their spells and what not on it yet. We’re not really supposed to be taking it down any further than a few hundred meters without Gandalf’s mojo on it.”

“We don’t need them to,” Gimli said as he lowered himself into the cramped chamber. “We used to build these things without the help of spells all the time. Don’t know why we even bother started with those things. Now close the hatch would you?”

“Yeah, sure…” His older brother said closing the hatch with a slam. From the outside he screwed the top down and tightened several bolts with an impact gun, creating an airtight seal. He jumped down onto the deck and put the gun on a table. “I can hear Dad now…” Gilid said as he straightened. “‘What were you thinking? You’re only fifty and you go and hijack the sub to go and try to get yourself killed at the bottom of the ocean!’ Oh…this is not gonna end well…” Fifty was just barely becoming an adult for a Dwarf. And yet somehow his foolish little brother had talked him into this insanity. He should _not_ be going along with this.

“You’re being over dramatic,” Gimli’s voice cackled across the speaker that was mounted next to the crane controls. “Just drop this thing over the side of the ship will ya, Gil?”

Gilid frowned but started the crane anyway. “Just what are you hoping to find down there anyway, Gimli?”

The speaker crackled to life again, “It’s not about finding anything… I just want to prove it’s possible.”

“That’s it?” Gilid demanded. “You want to prove something? You’re going to possibly kill yourself to prove something that’s never even been tested before! Do this with a dummy run!”

“It’s not just that, Gil! I want to see it… to see what it looks like down on the bottom of the ocean. Can you imagine what kind of monsters will be down there? The kind of world that they live in? I gotta see it, Gilid. I just gotta.”

Gilid sighed and pressed the control to lift the submarine. He still thought this was a bad idea. Their father was going to tan both their hides even if nothing went wrong and Gimli made it into the record books as the first to dive to the bottom of the ocean, but he knew better than to try and talk his brother out of something. Especially when his goal was within his reach. The crane creaked and groaned as it lifted the heavy sphere off the deck.

“I am going to be killed,” Gilid muttered to himself as he directed the crane to swing out. The reinforced diving sphere hung over the water for several moments before it started to slowly fall. “Father is going to rip me in half for agreeing to this and then Ma is going to scream until the parts of me burst into flames and turn to ash. I don’t know what is wrong with me that I am even letting you do this. Don’t you dare die, Gimli! And don’t even _think_ of breaking my sub!”

Gimli, the twerp, just grinned at him through the small but thick window in the sub and then sent out a gesture. Gilid had half a mind to abort the dive right then for pure cheek, but he didn’t. He was far too used to his brother’s attitude to bother taking anything Gimli did or said that seriously. Plus, if he was honest, he was painfully curious himself at how his sub would do. 

Still, that didn’t mean he was entirely convinced of this idea. Gilid pressed his intercom button. “I mean it, Gimli, if anything looks like it’s going wrong you tell me so I can bring you up. You break _one dial_ on **ORI** and I will rip you a new one!”

“Don’t worry, Gilid. I won’t even scratch your _precious **ORI**_. After all, what would you tell the real one if his namesake got a tiny wittle scwatch?” he asked teasingly. Gilid felt his cheeks grow hot. He hadn’t named the sub after anyone! It was… it was a coincidence! **ORI** just stood for Ocean Reconnaissance Instrument! Any relation to cute little librarians with frankly terrifying older brothers was purely in his own brother’s imagination!

He jabbed the intercom button hard. “Brat! You better enjoy yourself down there because when you get back I’m going to _murder_ you!” A raspberry through the intercom was the only reply he got. Gilid just stared at the controls for the crane and considered pulling the brat back up. He really should. Plenty of very logical sensible reasons why this whole thing shouldn’t even be happening. He sighed in frustration. “I’ll kill him later…”

Gimli wasn’t even slightly concerned as he looked out of the few small windows placed on three sides. All he could see was endless blue waters. He’d seen it before but it was still remarkable. He knew that he was really seeing further into the distance than he thought but there wasn’t any sign of life to give him any sort of reference as to how far it was exactly. It wasn’t like they had chummed the water to draw anything near. That wasn’t the point of this particular excursion. Pure depth was all he was concerned about initially although if he did see some sort of sea life he wouldn’t complain. So long as it wasn’t sea serpents. Those could stay well and truly far away. Though the sub had built in defenses meant to scare large predators away they wouldn’t hold up if something got particularly interested. He’d have to get yanked up to the surface faster than was really safe but at least he’d be alive. Still, sonar hadn’t spotted anything particularly large in the area so he was confident he’d be fine for the five to six hundred meters that they could detect with those instruments on the ship.

The microphones on the outside of the sub picked up distant noises. Gimli recognized the way the needles jumped as it probably being whale song. Very few creatures made the needle go that high even at such a huge distance. None of the other instruments were indicating anything strange though Gimli kept an eye on them. Things could go south very quickly and he’d have to react just as fast if they did. Dying in a deep-sea sub implosion was not preferred. He’d seen and heard stories of it before and knew that if it happened there wouldn’t even be much left to recover. He didn’t want to be one of those poor souls lost forever to the sea. A Dwarf couldn’t move on if their body wasn’t properly buried in stone. That was why Dwarves, historically, stayed well away from the ocean. But Gimli didn’t let the risk of losing a place in the afterlife deter him. If anything the higher stakes and added danger made the whole thing more intriguing and beautiful to him. No living being had ever made it to the bottom of the ocean and he doubted any Dwarf had even dreamed it, save himself. He was going to be the first. The first anything Dwarf or Man or Wizard (not that Wizards did much deep sea diving either).

Sinking down into the water was a slow process, mostly because it had to be controlled for reasons of pressure. The deep blue slowly got darker and colder. The meter indicator was continually wracked up the depth. He was almost three hundred meters down and it was not even very visible around him.

Gimli thought for a moment before deciding to go ahead and turn the sub’s lights on. Nothing was nearby but he wasn’t all that surprised. The temperature was still dropping outside and Gimli pulled on his robe. He didn’t yet need it but he knew he would soon enough. It never took long once the water got so very dark. He’d been this deep before in a less advanced sub so he didn’t bother hanging around and just went even deeper. 

As **ORI** drifted further down Gimli noticed a few huge tendrils that were dropping down into the ocean current by jellies. Gimli watched as the sub continued to sink further down and the long string-like tendrils of the jellies faded into the dark.

The dark seemed to become even more impenetrable as he sunk deeper and deeper towards the bottom of the ocean. The pressure was growing outside and the temperature had now dropped below freezing. Gimli pulled the robe tighter around himself and kept a closer eye on the instruments. If things were going to go bad this was where it would do so. He was getting very close to the limit of what he’d dived before. And certainly he’d never gone this deep without anyone else beside him in case of emergency.

“Everything’s going well,” Gimli said into the radio. “Almost down to a thousand meters.”

“How’s she holding up?”

“Pretty well,” Gimli replied. “Not really anything unexpected.” 

“Good. I’ll tell you when your time is up.”

Gimli nodded and kept looking around for anything that might indicate he was reaching the ocean floor. Down and down and down he went. It seemed to take forever and the pressure meter kept going up. The temperature went further down below freezing with no indication of reaching a stopping point.

Gimli was beginning to worry as the dials continued counting and he still had yet to see the ocean bottom. Just how far down did it go? There had to be a stop to it somewhere. He hadn’t anticipated the ocean floor being so far below. Over a thousand meters, yes. But he was already reaching halfway to two thousand and he saw nothing that would indicate he’d reached his target. Gimli shifted in his seat and tried to not worry. **ORI** had been designed specifically to reach such insane depths. He was perfectly safe.

The darkness was entirely unrelenting as **ORI** sunk further and further down. All the conditions of the ocean depths was being recorded for study later on by dozens of instruments. If he survived they would be all sorts of interesting, Gimli was sure. Still, they passed a mile down and still Gimli didn’t see anything and he was beginning to worry. But **ORI** was designed to go over four thousand meters down and he trusted that his brother had done all the calculations right so there wasn’t anything to worry about. If he kept insistently thinking that then just maybe he’d believe it.

He shouldn’t be so worried. He should be excited. As far as he knew very few people had dared travel this far down. Gimli adjusted the headlights of the submersible to try and see below him. There wasn’t much that was jumping out at him. He glanced at the dial and shook his head as the meters kept racking upwards. 

He kept drifting downwards and, mostly to keep himself from thinking about violent watery deaths, began to sing a few songs. It helped settle his nerves although in the sub the words didn’t echo as nicely as they did in the halls of his forefathers. He didn’t dare press the radio button; he would never hear the end of the teasing from Gilid if he did. That was the last thing that he needed. Still, he sang and gently tapped out the rhythm –that he would normally be stomping had he not been encased in something that was keeping him alive- against his knee.

As he sunk further and further down, he slowly relaxed again. This wasn’t so bad. Sure, it was deeper than he’d thought he’d have to go but **ORI** wasn’t even creaking or groaning. No danger signs were lit up and no emergency aborts flashing. No, everything seemed to be going just fine. Gimli forced himself to take a deep, cleansing breath, which helped significantly to ease away the last few knots in his chest. He hoped it didn’t take as long to go up as it did to get down though. Down here he couldn’t tell what the weather conditions were like. But, Gilid would be sure to call the dive to a halt if things got unsafe. His brother wouldn’t dare risk damage or loss of the sub. Gimli snickered a bit at his brother’s misplaced and somewhat pathetic pinning affections. If only he’d Dwarf-up and talk to the little librarian maybe the sub wouldn’t have such a telling name.

Gimli continued to amuse himself by singing and recording the outside conditions until something caught his eye in the small view port that was directly in front of him. White.

_White sand._

Gimli put his clipboard off to the side and glanced at the depth marker. Three and a half thousand meters. His eyes widened. That was far deeper than he’d thought. He looked out at the desolate and endless white sand and moved the light around. There were rocks and outcroppings but nothing else. But then he realized what he thought was just random patterns were actually tracks from animals. He could definitely see the familiar patterns of sea-star movements.

A huge smile broke out across his face as he realized the fullness of what he’d done. He’d reached the floor. He’d done it! And there were animals down here after all! Sure all he’d seen so far were sea-star tracks but that was more than some thought would be down here. 

Gimli jabbed the radio button. “Gilid! Gilid! I’m here, Gil!” he said unable to wait long enough to hear if his brother was responding or not. “There’s sea-star tracks! There’s really life down here! It’s amazing, Gilid! It’s so clear down here! You’d barely think it’s underwater at all!”

There was a moment’s silence. “How deep are you?”

“Over three thousand meters, your wife is amazing, Gil! Got me down here without any problem at all,” he said, still grinning widely. Gimli worked fast to record as much as he could and take as many pictures and film as he could.

“You sound awfully excited,” Gilid said with a bit of a laugh. “I’m not even sure if I can beat you for that wife comment when you sound so happy.”

“Well, it’s amazing, what do you expect?” Gimli said as he adjusted the light to see further ahead of him. “How much time do I have to explore?”

Gilid was silent for a moment. “Probably only a half hour, Gim. It took you a long time to get down there.”

Gimli was disappointed but not surprised. “Right. Well, I’ll take however long you can give me and I’ll get as much information as I can. Maybe I’ll even find some animals or something.”

“Don’t get your hopes too high,” Gilid replied. “There’s a lot of ocean floor to look at you know.”

Gimli wasn’t stupid. He knew that. But that didn’t mean he couldn’t hope he’d get twice as lucky and find a living creature. The white sand was interrupted still by the tracks of sea creatures but nothing actually living yet. 

Time ticked away far faster than Gimli wanted. He still had found no living animals but had found an abundance of tracks and bones from fish that had clearly fallen from more abundant life filled levels of the ocean. Gimli couldn’t help but sigh in disappointment as he made his way back towards the surface. Half an hour was simply not long enough to truly sate him. He would have to plan for a clear day next time so that he could explore even more of this new world.

With more than a few reluctant glances out of the small windows, Gimli made himself pilot **ORI** back towards the surface. Just as he was turning from the window to his instruments, Gimli thought he spotted movement along the edge of his spotlight. He quickly turned and adjusted the lights but whatever he thought he saw had been fast and was now long gone. He waited another few moments, slightly adjusting the light for any sign of what he’d spotted. He knew it was probably vain but he couldn’t stop himself from making the attempt. 

He sighed and turned back to what he was doing. “I’ll be back,” he promised himself and whatever fish he’d glimpsed. He’d finally reached where he wanted to see and now nothing would be keeping him away. Not even his father inevitably grounding him for taking out the sub without permission or having used the proper safety protocols. 

“This is amazing, Gil,” Gimli gushed into the radio. “It’s like nothing else in the world. I can’t wait until you see the video I took.”

“I thought you said you didn’t see anything alive?”

Gimli scowled. “Well, no, but it’s the first video taken live on the bottom of the ocean. Show a little appropriate awe.”

“I will try my best after I make sure you didn’t hurt my sub.”

“You need to ask Ori out already. It’s getting embarrassing to see you using a sub to substitute who you really want to dote on.”

“I do not substitute!” 

Gimli snorted. That wasn’t even slightly believable. He didn’t care what Gilid said, he’d named the sub **ORI** on purpose. Just because he managed (after the fact, Gimli was sure) to come up with a somewhat reasonable reason for the sub to have that acronym didn’t mean it wasn’t named for the librarian. Gilid wasn’t as good of a liar as he seemed to think he was.

“Uh oh,” Gilid said over the radio.

“What?”

“Dad’s calling in. I guess he’s realized that we took the boat out. You are coming up right?”

“Yeah. Just… try and hold him off?”

“You’re funny, Gim. Super funny. I’m sure Dad’s just laughing his head off.”

Gimli made a face at that. He hoped his grounding wouldn’t be too long. He wanted to get back down here to investigate as soon as possible. There was so much more he had to explore. He’d barely seen anything of what he could have. Next time he’d be sure to descend a little faster so that he could actually get some decent exploring done. He’d been the first to reach the bottom but now that wasn’t enough. Not even close.

Just laying sight on such an alien and yet somehow intriguing landscape had only brought out his inner explorer. He wanted to see more and find out everything he could about this beautifully desolate world. It had to be more than just a sandy plain with some sea-stars on it. He knew it. He didn’t know how he knew it but he did and it was only a matter of time before he started discovering secrets. He glanced out of the windows and already could see nothing but darkness. It hadn’t taken very long at all to lose sight of what had been his dream for so long.

He wished he could get away with spending more time below but with a storm probably fast approaching by this time and his father looking for him, Gimli didn’t dare risk it. As he ascended again, the microphones picked up the whistles and moans of whales. Probably one of the larger species of whale that dive down to do deep-water hunting. Gimli highly doubted that they would be close since sound carried so well through water. Still, it was beautiful, if haunting. Much like the desolate landscape of the ocean floor.

It took less time to reach the surface than it had to drop down to the ocean floor but Gimli was surprised to find that he had drifted a bit further from the ship than he’d thought he would. He radioed his brother with the coordinates he had come up at even as he glanced out of the small windows. The sea was very choppy now and the sky fully covered in dark clouds. There was a lot more wind now and Gimli could tell he didn’t have much time to spare in getting back on the ship before the storm hit. Luckily for him, Gilid was already heading his way to retrieve him and his precious sub.

While Gimli waited for his brother, he turned his attention to the different pictures and video he had taken of the sea floor. He could just imagine what lived down in such a place. Well, he could certainly try to imagine them though he didn’t have a whole lot of hope that he was being particularly accurate. That didn’t really matter anyway. All that mattered was that he now had seen it and his imagination was absolutely wild with possibilities.

As Gimli flipped looked through the pictures he noted most closely that it wasn’t just sea-star tracks across the sand but other tracks that he in no way recognized. Long deep furrows in nearly straight lines and strange wavering lines that didn’t look the same as the star’s pathways. Gimli made notes of all the different markings he thought might be tracks from animals.

Before he could get even halfway through the wide range of pictures he had taken, his brother had finally caught up and Gimli had to put his pictures away long enough to help get back onto the ship. It took longer than either he or Gilid really wanted but they couldn’t rush something like that. **ORI** was a large, very heavy, very expensive submersible and they had to take a few precautions. It took lots of coordination and patience to safely get **ORI** onto the ship. It would really be easier with more help but the made do without it because they didn’t have a choice.

Even working as fast and safely as they could, it took Gimli and Gilid nearly forty-five minutes to get the sub fully secured on the deck and Gimli released from the pressurize inside cabin. By then the storm was right over top of them and the waves were getting to be a problem. Rain was coming down hard upon their heads, plastering their thick hair to their skulls. “Beautiful weather, wasn’t that what you said?” Gilid asked loudly over the sound of rain beating against the metal decking.

“Oh shut up and get us home, Gil!” Gimli shouted back. 

“You know, as the older brother, I think you shouldn’t order me around so much,” he said even as they both hurried up the stairs towards the cabin door. They were soaking when they got inside and Gilid quickly started to get everything ready to head back to shore. “I’m going to tell dad this was all your idea. Already did, in fact!”

“Coward,” Gimli replied as he reached for some towels that had already been set out earlier. He quickly threw one at his brother, who made a noise of annoyance as the soft fluffy thing collided with the back of his head. Gimli took up another towel and started drying his own hair off. 

Gimli wasn’t too worried about getting back to shore even though the storm would make some navigation a little trickier. Gilid was pretty good at it, despite his inner ear problem sometimes causing him to need someone else to take over for brief periods. Besides, they were heading away from the storm… he hoped. He was fairly certain anyway. If he hadn’t gotten turned around while he was in the featureless depths they should still be heading the way he thought.

“Dad said to radio him once you got back on board, enjoy,” Gilid said gesturing with one hand to the radio across the room.

“I think I hate you, Gil,” Gimli said even as he sighed. “I was hoping to study what I brought up before I got in trouble…”

“Sorry,” Gilid said, not sounding even slightly sorry.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Gimli muttered as he rubbed some more water out of his now tangled and damp red hair. “You sound real broken up about it.” Gimli pulled the headphones on and flicked the appropriate switch before calling out to the station they had in the workshop back home.

It took only about half a second for Glóin to respond. “What in the hell do you think you were doing?” Gimli was glad he’d had the foresight to keep the volume low because he was certain the roar would have deafened him if he hadn’t. “Do you have any idea how worried your mother’s been?”

“Da, I’m fine,” Gimli said. “Really. It all went beautifully. And I did it, Da! I got to the bottom! It was so amazing! And there’s animals down there. I saw the tracks for sure and I thought I saw some sort of fish on the edge of the light but I can’t be as sure about that one.”

“That’s not the point!” Glóin roared. “You could have died! Ya coulda imploded and your soul woulda been lost forever! That’s not worth it, Gimli!”

Gimli rolled his eyes. “I was fine, though!” he insisted. “Didn’t you hear me? It worked! I got all the way down to the bottom. I thought you’d be proud.”

“I’ll be proud after I tan your hide!” Gimli sighed and shifted his headphones so that he was only listening to one ear as his father started on a long speech that was really more rant than safety talk. Gimli flicked his microphone off as he leaned back in his chair. He hadn’t really expected too much different but it would be nice if his father could not express his worry in such loud tones every once and a while… just for a change of pace.

“At least he’s yelling at me where I can only pretend to listen,” Gimli said.

Gilid chuckled. “Right, I’ll just tell him you were ignoring him, shall I?”

“Like it matters,” Gimli muttered. “He’ll just repeat everything anyway once he gets me in front of him. He’s that angry at me.”

“It’s how he shows he cares.” As if Gimli didn’t know that already. Glóin always got loud with bluster when he was worried. Or embarrassed. Or really any emotion at all. Their father often used mock anger to cover for what he was really thinking and feeling.

“You think he even registered what I said about making it to the bottom?”

Gilid thought about it before shaking his head. “Nah, not really.”

“Figures.”


	2. Of Hobbits

The crushing black depths of the ocean floor were, as usual, still and icy and mostly silent. The water currents were very faint this far down and all the light had to be produced by bioluminescence. The sea floor was mostly a barren landscape where only small creatures dwelt. But in a few places, life flourished despite the harsh conditions. The deep-sea vents that spewed incredibly hot, mineral rich, water into the open oceans had all sorts of strange creatures around them from pure white crab and fish to brilliant red tubeworms and large shrimp. Lakes of brine that had separated from the rest of the sea water were surrounded by mollusks and crustaceans of their own, often layered so thick as to appear as if it were a shore line. Ancient deep sea corals grew out of the ground over methane deposits and became as twisted and interlocked as any ancient forest above ground. And then there were, of course, the massive underwater mountain ranges and chasms that could stretch for miles across the sea floor. 

Nestled between one of the smaller mountain ranges and another larger one, was a very peculiar sight indeed. The area was a gentle rolling plain of many miles which was sheltered by the two spans of mountains nearby from any large deep sea predators like sea serpents. One very large section of these rolling hills was covered by a crystalline dome, which seemed to shimmer and sparkle as if being hit by the sun so far above them. Within the dome, the hills were covered in green grass that had absolutely no right to be growing so far below the waves. Little ponds and lakes of fresh water dotted the landscape and one very large lake near the rocky southern mountain boarder was as salty as the sea outside. 

Among the grassy knolls there were little structures and ancient trees and even crops growing lush and large. Homes had been carefully scraped into the hills for the very strange creatures that lived there. They were little things with slightly too large eyes, large feet, and small pointed leaf-like ears. They were Hobbits of the Shire and they were very content. True, their situation had been rather -shall we say- desperate some time back but they’d managed to survive the frankly terrifying experience of sinking to the bottom of the ocean and had discovered it really wasn’t so bad. Nothing bothered them for the most part. They had their peaceful lives and comforts and really, what else was there? They didn’t have any need for anything save their gardens and their families and their absolutely wonderful field parties. 

Well, they _could_ run off like that absolutely insane Baggins character had all those years ago (they weren’t entirely cut off from the surface world), but they weren’t all mad either. What did the surface really have that was so wonderful anyway? Well, real sunshine would be nice, they supposed, but their enchanted ceiling gave a very respectable substitute. When Mad Baggins had returned and told his very tall tales the idea of just how much the surface had changed in all those centuries was actually a little terrifying. A ‘car’ for instance sounded like something out of a nightmare. And why would you want to travel so far from home anyway?

No, the vast majority of Hobbits found their secluded life in their magical Shire most satisfying. Besides, if they were to leave, well, what would become of their neighbors? They had worked together for so long, it didn’t seem right to just up and leave for no real reason.

And then, quite suddenly, Mad Baggins returned.

Bilbo Baggins was quite a bit older than he had been last he’d been in the Shire. He visited from time to time but on the whole he stayed on the surface with his friends and somewhat secret family. These two lives were never supposed to touch. The Hobbits very closely guarded the secret of the Shire and Bilbo had never once told anyone about where he was from. Not it’s location anyway. And he never bothered telling anyone in the Shire about his life on the surface. But he had just discovered something that he couldn’t just stay silent about. 

He hurried through the Old Forest at the very eastern edge of the dome. For it was from the old Bombadil house within the Forest where it was possible to venture to the surface. The Old Forest itself had been silent for many long years now and so Bilbo didn’t worry as he ran down the rarely used path towards the open air of the Shire proper. When the Sinking had happened all those years ago much of the Old Forest had not survived and ever since the lack of real sun had seemed to leave the Forest almost sluggish and sleepy, which suited the Hobbits just fine. It kept everything peaceful.

Bilbo had used the paths through the Old Forest many times now and though he did get lost twice (he always got lost at least a time or two) he managed to make it out of the trees without great incident. Of course, then came the journey to The Bay, which was what the Hobbits called the large body of salt water on the southern edge of their protected land. It was quite a distance for him to travel but Bilbo had to get there quickly. Luckily, he had long ago smuggled something into the Shire that would help. 

Once he was out of the Old Forest, Bilbo quickly made his way to the hidden shed. Within the shed was a bicycle from the surface. At first, Bilbo had been quite wary of the thing but it did speed up his travels quite nicely. And it was quiet, which was also nice. He never dared to take it where other Hobbits would spot it but it sped up his travels so that he could actually get where he needed to go without it taking forever and it wasn’t like he could just leave a pony waiting for him out in the middle of nowhere for years.

Even with his bicycle though, it took Bilbo most of the day to get from the Old Forest to The Bay. The enchanted ceiling over the Shire had dimmed in an imitation of night and now the pure darkness of the outside ocean was allowed to be seen. Not that there was much _to_ see. Every once and a while they could make out the sparkle of bioluminescent squid or jellyfish but rarely was anything large enough to be seen by the Hobbits on the ground.

Bilbo arrived at The Bay when the dome was at the darkest and carefully hid his bicycle under a large tree. He approached the water’s edge and looked at it uneasily. He’d rushed here because he had something important to share but he had no idea if there would be any of them in The Bay at the moment. With some reluctance, as he knew the water would be positively bone chilling, Bilbo slipped out of his clothes and folded them neatly on a nearby rock. 

At the first touch of the water he couldn’t help but gasp and jump back out. It really was terribly cold. He’d only have a moment or two before he’d have to get out. Bilbo steeled away his determination and took a few more steps into the gently sloping sandy bottom. He forced himself to walk over to where there were several warning posts imbedded in the ground and sticking up into the sky. He grabbed onto one and peered over the edge of what was essentially a sheer drop off. It was deadly for a Hobbit to venture beyond the posts for if they couldn’t swim (and many couldn’t) it would be a dozen feet before the drop ended.

There was nothing beneath the water but blackness. Bilbo frowned at the water in front of him even though his teeth were already chattering from the cold of the water. He only looked for another few heartbeats before giving up and turning back around. He couldn’t feel his toes or his fingers as he trudged back up to the shore where he would dry off and warm up. There was a small shed nearby where Bilbo went to find some towels and light a small fire to take the chill from his body.

The shed wasn’t locked and there was a fire pit all ready to be lit. It was often kept such for any Hobbit that felt the need for a dip in the icy water or for those who had some reason to truly need to do so. 

Just as Bilbo was leaving the shed (dried, warmed, and dressed), the Hobbit noticed a few specks of blue light out of the corner of his eye. He turned and smiled a bit at the strange yet beautiful head that broke the surface of the drop off. He waved a little in greeting and made his way this time onto a short dock that had been built. It didn’t quite go far enough to reach the drop off but it would be close enough so that Bilbo could talk to his visitor without getting quite so cold again or needing to shout.

Bilbo knelt down at the end of the dock and the visitor moved closer until it wasn’t fully in the deep waters any longer. Bilbo could see the pale skin through the clear water and the long scaled tail as it draped over the drop off and then disappear from Bilbo’s sight. It was a male, Bilbo could tell, with beautiful pale silver scales that glimmered with even the faintest light. His hair was as long as all of his kind kept it and nearly as black as the water, which meant he was from one of the Imladris pods, although what position he might hold in said pod Bilbo could only guess at. The merperson social structure was slightly beyond his understanding. “It’s rather late for a Hobbit to be swimming,” the merman greeted.

“Yes, but I was rather hoping to run into one of your kind. I have some disturbing news,” Bilbo said.

The merman’s brow furrowed and his slightly oversized grey eyes were concerned. “Disturbing news? Disturbing in what way?” he asked as he shifted so that he could rest one scaled arm on the top of the dock and pull himself partially out of the water. The nearly translucent webbing between his fingers nearly matched the long but delicate pointed ear that lay close to the curve of his head, though his ear was distinctly thicker and less translucent.

“It deals with the surface,” Bilbo said. “Can you bring Lord Elrond here. I fear I must discuss this with him.”

“My Lord Elrond is quite busy, are you certain this is so serious as to need his attention?”

Bilbo nodded. “I’m afraid so. Please, bring him here as soon as you can.”

The merman still looked uncertain but then nodded and pushed himself back off of the dock. Bilbo watched as many spots along the merman’s body began to glow blue again and he dove down. Bilbo knew each merperson had a distinctive pattern of glowing spots they were born with as well as large ones on the back of their hands, but to Bilbo the pattern of spots long the merman’s body were some indistinct clustering. His tail looped and seemed to go on for far longer than it should before his silvery fin broke the surface with a splash and was gone again.

The Hobbit sighed and sat back on the dock. It would probably take some time for the merman to get Elrond to The Bay. Probably a full day. He would have to do something to pass the time. Maybe he could visit his cousins and such while he waited. He hadn’t visited them in a while. Not since he had left Bag End to Drogo and his young family. Bilbo smiled some as he recalled how utterly disgusted Lobelia had been to learn Bilbo had gifted his home to someone other than her. As if he would ever give that dreadful woman anything.

Bilbo sat for another few moments and studied the dome above his head. There was a certain peacefulness down here that he had to admit he’d missed. Perhaps he should make an effort to visit more often. Thorin wouldn’t mind, he didn’t think. Well, not if they were short trips. Otherwise Thorin would probably starve to death with how horrible a cook he was. As it was Bilbo had told Bombur to make sure his foolish husband actually got fed while he was away. 

After perhaps a half hour of sitting on the dock and just enjoying the pleasantly peaceful atmosphere, Bilbo got to his feet and brushed the sand off of his trousers. There was always a bit of sand on the dock from little Fauntlings trailing it around and it not doubt had stuck to the seat of his pants.

He decided to walk through the Shire rather than taking his bicycle. He could do with a refreshing walk and he wasn’t truly in a hurry. With how late it was, the Shire was all quiet and mostly still. There were a handful of crickets and frogs making noise but little else. Even the Green Dragon was quiet this late at night. The lights were still on in the windows but most of the patrons had left or been carried home by friends or relatives.

Bilbo took the long way around to peer into the little gardens that were growing. The potter had a wide array of pots and jugs ready for firing and the blacksmith’s little forge had been reduced to banked coals for the night. Bilbo smiled some at the forge, he’d almost forgotten that they didn’t need to take up entire rooms and churn out massive amounts of molten metal. Living with dwarves it was easy to forget that they tended to need far more from a forge than a simple hobbit would. So long as they could make nails, horseshoes, plows, and other such simple things, it was plenty big enough. 

A cat lifting its head as Bilbo passed the fence it was lounging across. It fixed the Hobbit with a blank stare before yawning and going back to sleep. Bilbo felt his mouth twitch in a smile before he moved on. 

Bilbo meandered for quite a while before he finally reached Bag End. It was obscenely late at night so Bilbo decided to make use of something Drogo had told him ages ago. That Bilbo had an open invitation to visit at any time. He knew there was a key behind the birdhouse so Bilbo quietly let himself into the smial. All was quiet and Bilbo did his best to ensure he didn’t wake anyone as he relocked the door and made his way through the familiar halls to the guest room. He’d take a short nap and then fix some breakfast before offering to spend the day with the family down at the Bay. He knew Frodo would enjoy that. The lad was always more than willing to go where he could catch a glimpse of their neighbors. Well, he had been last time Bilbo had visited.

Though his family was surprised to see him that morning making breakfast they were nonetheless pleased and more than welcoming. Well, truthfully, Primula was less than pleased that Bilbo had done so much of the work in making breakfast himself and promptly took over although there wasn’t much left to do. Bilbo knew better than to get in her way and just allowed Frodo to distract him with endless questions. 

“Do they really have contraptions that fly like birds, Uncle Bilbo?” he was asking as his mother laid out some fresh baked bread.

“Well, not exactly like birds,” Bilbo said as he gestured some with his mug of tea. “But yes, they soar through the air. I’ve never understood it fully but I’ve seen them do it. Quite remarkable actually. They’re large enough for dozens of people to be inside while they fly. It’s considered quite ordinary up there.”

Frodo’s eyes practically sparkled. “I’d love to see it someday. Uncle Bilbo, could you take me with you when you go to the surface next time?”

“Well, Frodo my lad, that sounds like something to discuss with your parents,” Bilbo said rather than give his own answer. He knew better than to promise something like that. Frodo instantly turned to look at his father, who promptly found something else to do entirely. Frodo didn’t seem as amused as Bilbo was. “Anyway, I was going to spend the day by the Bay, perhaps you’d like to keep me company, Frodo.”

“The Bay?” Primula echoed as she put some porridge on the table and sat down herself. “Why spend your day there, Bilbo?”

“Well, I’ve some news to pass on to Lord Elrond,” Bilbo explained. “I’ve already asked him to meet me but I’ve, of course, no idea when he’ll arrive. I thought we could make a day of the wait.”

“News from the surface?” Frodo asked, eyes sparkling.

Bilbo smiled. “Yes, news from the surface. Since I’m the only one who lives on the surface I’m the only one that can tell them of important things going on up there,” he said gesturing above them with a vague wave of his fork. “And there are things going on that they need to know about.”

“Things like what?”

“Well, perhaps if you keep me company today you’ll find out, Frodo lad,” Bilbo said with a smile. 

Frodo nodded his agreement instantly. It wasn’t as if he’d pass up a chance to spend time with his Uncle anyway. The added benefit of seeing the mermen that lived near the Shire just made him want to go more. Plus the chance of knowing what was so important. Frodo would have to be crazy to not want to be involved in such wonderful goings on.

“Well, then, that’s settled,” Bilbo said as he selected some sausage from the serving plate. “Drogo? Primula? Will you be joining us, as well?”

“Oh, I don’t see why not,” Primula said. “It would be a nice change of pace, I think.” 

Drogo nodded in agreement with his wife. “Very much so, we haven’t visited the Bay in some time now.”

“We can pack a little picnic and make a proper outing of it,” Primula added. 

“Excellent! Excellent!”

Of course, a ‘little picnic’ for four Hobbits was something a bit more expansive. It required three baskets chock full of various dishes and containers and had taken about half of the morning to get together. Once they reached the Bay, they spread out a blanket on the grass by the beach and sat back to enjoy themselves.

There were a few other families around but no Hobbit dared get in the water. Even mid morning the water would be frightfully cold and the chance of drowning high. Only in the very middle of the day when it was hottest would most Hobbits dare to take a dip in the Bay’s water. The freshwater lakes sometimes got swimmers as they tended to be several degrees warmer but even then it was rare since Hobbits weren’t favorable to swimming. Really, the entire purpose for the Bay was more for their neighbors the Merpeople than the Hobbits. The dome protecting the Shire was too thick to speak through and enchanted so that passing through it would be just as impossible as passing through rock. The only way had been to create an alternate way for the Merpeople to enter the Shire.

The only safe way for that, they had decided, was the Bay and the underwater tunnel that led from the open ocean to the bottom of it. The fact that it made a rather nice little picnic spot was just a happy chance and not so much intentional.

As Bilbo waited for Lord Elrond to arrive, he entertained Frodo with a few stories from the surface. Primula and Drogo took a stroll and Frodo insisted on a few games to pass the time. It was a very nice day for such things, but then it almost always was. The enchantments of the Shire kept it in a perpetually lovely spring day. Rarely did it get stormy or overcast and usually if it did get that way it was in response to something outside. Usually the darkness of the day meant that a sea serpent was too close and the brilliant sparkle of the dome had dimmed to better hide them.

At some point in the early afternoon, Frodo’s friends came by and Bilbo waved them off to go keep themselves entertained. The last thing he wanted was to try and keep four mostly grown Hobbits occupied. It was almost always best to leave them to their own devices. Besides, Bilbo wouldn’t have to deal with the consequences afterwards.

Bilbo kept at least one eye on the water as he enjoyed the light of the day. Several hours past noon he spotted something break the surface of the water. He turned his full attention to the Bay and smiled when he recognized the familiar dark hair and eyes of Lord Elrond. Bilbo quickly got up and brushed his pants off before hurrying to the dock. Lord Elrond had his usual silver circlet around his head to denote his position as a Pod Leader. All Leaders had some sort of crown or circlet although Bilbo had no idea what they were made of that wouldn’t tarnish with constant exposure to the seawater. It was yet another mystery of their existence he supposed.

“My friend! It has been so long,” Bilbo greeted as he crouched down beside the dock’s edge.

“Indeed it has. I was told you had something important to speak with me about? You’re not usually one for such urgency,” Elrond said. 

Down below, in the depths of the tunnel, Bilbo could just make out the sight of two other mermen seemingly chasing and wrestling with each other. They were hard to see but Bilbo could guess that they were a certain pair of identical males. “I see your boys are as energetic as ever,” Bilbo said nodding down towards them.

Elrond glanced over his shoulder and nodded. “Yes, they are much the same as they ever were,” he agreed with a sigh. “Sometimes I wonder if as much time has passed as I think it has.”

Bilbo smiled. He could understand that. Despite how much time had passed Thorin’s nephews sometimes still displayed quite the irrepressible childish streak. Still, he wasn’t here to lament the younger generation with Elrond. “A lot has happened on the surface and some of it you definitely need to know about.”

Elrond tilted his head slightly. “What could have happened on the surface that needs our attention?”

The Hobbit cleared his throat some. “Your people retreated to these depths after all of those unfortunate incidents with humans and dwarves, yes?” Elrond looked mildly confused but nodded in agreement. “Well, it seems that there’s a growing interest in exploring the sea floor.”

“Are they searching for us?” Elrond asked, clearly alarmed.

“No! No, nothing like that!” Bilbo assured him. “From what I’ve gathered they all assume all the stories were nothing by myths and legends. They don’t seem to think that you really exist. But, they did manage to reach the sea floor just last week. I thought you would want to know.”

Elrond frowned and moved closer. “How could they have reached the ocean floor?” he asked.

“They’ve made a vessel of some sort that can travel down this far,” Bilbo explained. “I don’t know the workings of it but they managed to get to the bottom. They can’t stay down long so it will take them some time to fully explore much area at all but they seem determined.”

“A vessel…” Elrond echoed. “How odd… but you say they aren’t looking for us?”

Bilbo shook his head. “No, they are just curious. They’ve no ill will that I can tell.”

“You’re right in that we needed to know about this,” Elrond said after several minutes of silence. “Some will be very upset to hear that the surfacers can reach us here. It seems very little good has come of us interacting with men and dwarves.”

“Surely it wasn’t all bad, though,” Bilbo argued. “After all, don’t you have some man in you?”

Elrond couldn’t quite help the wry smile. “Indeed… but that was some time ago,” he pointed out. “Most of our interactions have led to our children dying or other such tragedies.”

“Well, at least they can barely make it down here,” Bilbo reasoned. “It will be some time before they can manage to find any of you and even if they do manage it they won’t be able to do anything. I’ll try and find out where exactly they reached the bottom so that you can warn whatever pod is closest.”

“Thank you, that would be quite helpful,” Elrond agreed. There was a long moment of silence. “I must admit… I am impressed they would brave the depths what with the dangers for them here.” Between the crushing pressure and the inherent lack of oxygen there was plenty to deter them and that wasn’t even counting the massive squids or fanged jaws of sea serpents.

“Nobody ever said that they weren’t brave,” Bilbo commented.

“Brave?” Elrond echoed in surprise. A moment later he nodded a little. “Yes, I suppose they are. Foolish as well, one might say.”

Bilbo decided it was best to not comment on that. “Are you sure that hiding from them is the best thing to do?” he asked after several moments. “It isn’t like back then. They might not be as… difficult as they used to be. I live on the surface now I can’t see the history you fear repeating. Not now.”

Elrond seemed to consider that for several long moments and then glanced behind him at the two younger mermen chasing each other in the depths. “Perhaps they aren’t the same,” he murmured. “But I cannot risk it. I do not want to see my children caught in nets and butchered by those who do not understand us or even wish to.”

“I don’t think they’d do that,” Bilbo insisted. “They would listen to you now… well, men would. Dwarves don’t listen to anyone really…”

The merman lifted a brow. “You don’t make the best case for them,” he commented.

“Well, I’m not about to lie,” Bilbo said with a bit of indignation. “They’re stubborn people but they mean well. You just have to work a bit to get through those thick skulls that they were born with. Heads like rock, indeed.”

Elrond chuckled some. “I suppose you would know better than I. But I must go,” he said moving back from the dock slightly. “The others must be informed of this and we need to decide what to do. No doubt it will take some time to reach an agreement.”

“I hope you don’t go into hiding,” Bilbo said. “You’ve done enough of that.” Besides, there weren’t too many places left to go. They could retreat to the bottoms of the trenches, he supposed, but after that they would have nowhere.

“We shall see,” Elrond said. “But, we have survived this long by doing just that.”

Bilbo frowned. “Well, it might not be the best method.”

“Perhaps not,” Elrond said mildly. “Thank you for the information, my friend.”

“Of course.” Bilbo might not agree fully with their reasons and decisions but he did understand _why_ they were made and it seemed only fair to warn them that their secret existence was possibly being threatened.

Elrond bowed his head some before disappearing into the water. Bilbo leaned over and watched as he and his two sons faded from view. The stories Bilbo had heard from the time when the merpeople lived closer to the surface in amongst coral reefs and lagoons had very rarely ended well. Either it resulted in death of one of their children or the death of men and dwarves, whom usually had family or friends that then blamed the merpeople for said deaths. Many many mistakes and misunderstandings had happened and Bilbo couldn’t blame them from wanting to escape so that it didn’t happen anymore. All it really took was one mermaid dying for her love of a man or one man jumping into a storm and drowning for a depressing precedent to be set. Not only had those things both happened but so too had entire boats been sunk and colonies of merpeople been slaughtered. But Bilbo was certain that such things wouldn’t happen in the current day and age.

Not only had the people on the surface changed since the old days but the merpeople now lived far enough out of reach that even if some misunderstanding occurred, it was unlikely those on the surface could do much. It took them this long to just _reach_ the bottom. Attacking it would undoubtedly take just as long to figure out. He was sure of it.


	3. Merereef

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sassy Tauriel is Sassy. I'm enjoying writing a bit more playful banter between Tauriel and Legs. It's refreshing. Also, how is Sassy Tauriel not a tag yet!?

The massive and ancient tangle of corals known as Merereef loomed ominously above the nearly flat sandy bottom of the ocean. Merereef was a tightly wound knot of bone white limbs with smatterings of heated vents throughout and along the edges. The smaller branches of pale rock could easily break off, but the oldest and thickest of the coral were just as strong as the ancient tree trunks that were up above. The tightly clumped branches of coral eased into a looser arrangement nearer to the inside of the veritable underwater forest. Deep-sea creatures hunted in the depths of the reef and had slowly broken apart the more fragile limbs to make room for them to move surprisingly quickly.

The biggest of the creatures that populated the coral forest were the Giant Spider Crabs. The massive spindly eight-legged creatures managed to blend in well with their snowy white legs and hardened bodies that nearly perfectly mimicked the tall corals. Their carapaces were covered in gruesome spiky protrusions that were hard as any rock and often broken into jagged ends from battles. Their nearly nonexistent eyes were tiny black dots behind their overdeveloped mandibles. Grasping claws with wicked serrated edges could slice most animals in half with little to no effort at all before bringing their prey close to devour it. When not actively hunting, the Giant Crabs stayed quite still and half buried under the loose sand beneath the coral, leaving only their dangerous claws exposed for defense and any opportunity that might come by.

But the crabs were not the only animals to live within the coral forest, though anything larger than the crabs was simply unable to maneuver through the tight spaces. Sea serpents sometimes swooped low to try and find crabs left exposed, but that was a rarity. Eels and fish wove their way through the white branches and picked at the bright red, purple, and orange tube worms that lived within the coral itself, especially around the heated vents. With the brightly colored tube worms popping out to feed from the currents it lent the entire underwater reef to appear almost as if it were a forest in the fullness of autumn. Until something came too close and the worms shut themselves away and turned the blooming forest into the long empty limbs found in the dead of winter. 

Occasionally larger deep-sea sharks would venture into the corals in search of food. The worms in the corals provided the primary food source for many small crustaceans and fish, but most of the would-be predator sharks had learned over the centuries that it was not a riskless hunting ground. Spider Crabs were quite fond of eating larger prey like sharks and were more than capable of ripping their cartilage skeletons into small pieces.

Deep in the middle of the coral forest and under the maze of white rock there was a collapsed cave system that was half exposed to the open water. It was riddled with plunging tunnels and hot methane vents which had formed over centuries. Hanging from various coral limbs and the large stalactite formations of the caves were balls of sparkling bioluminescence harvested from a wide array of sources. 

The Giant Spider Crabs stayed far away from the intricate cave system. They knew that the creatures that made their home in the caves were more than capable of killing the crabs with their incredibly sharp blades and deadly accuracy with harpoons and spears. Frequently the merpeople who dwelt in the caves swept through the Merereef they called home and killed any Spider Crabs they came across, ensuring that the quickly reproducing numbers stayed fewer and those that escaped were smaller than if they were left unchecked.

Even with the regular sweeps of the forest, it was a dangerous place for a merperson to venture alone. The crabs could still easily surprise and overpower the unaware, and a few of the eel species that slipped through the tiny spaces were quite venomous. Most visitors to Merereef knew to keep to a path that had been clearly marked with small carved plinths, which held little balls of biolight. The lights kept the smaller creatures away, and regular patrols ensured that the Giant Spider Crabs were also kept in check.

It was on this twisting path through the coral that a dark haired merman messenger was met by several other merpeople, these with hair that ranged from a golden brown to an almost sandy shade. One exception to this was the merman in the front of the group. He had long hair that shimmered between pale gold and bright silver, showing he was originally from a different pod than the others. His blue eyes shone almost with the same brilliance as the bioluminescence that was used as lighting down so far removed from the sun. His sleek but powerful tail was covered in shining scales in a silver-grey color and was impressively long. He wore two long knives on his back and carried a large number of harpoons at his hips like all the others in his group did. "Prince Legolas," the messenger greeted him, able to identify the other merman by his differences in coloration and the higher quality knives at his back. "I have important news from Lord Elrond."

"News?" Legolas echoed. "What sort of news?"

The stranger hesitated for a moment. He was only supposed to tell his information to the Pod Leader, but he didn’t know if the Prince would take him to see his father if nothing was said at all. Thranduil was known to not see most visitors if he even allowed them. Lord Elrond had been very clear, however. “There has been a message from the surface,” the messenger said. “About the surface dwellers having built a contraption that allows them to come to the ocean floor.”

There was silence after this statement and more than a few of the Merereef patrol exchanged uneasy glances. The stories about surfacers were numerous and far from pleasant. Most generally accepted the idea that if surface dwellers ever did reach them down in the depths of the sea another round of fighting and death would inevitably follow. And despite the problems that they had with the Giant Crabs, their life in Merereef was peaceful and happy.

Legolas glanced over his shoulder at his patrol, and they quieted at his silent command. “Who does this information come from?”

“Lord Elrond said that a Hobbit of the Shire makes routine trips to the surface and when he heard about it came down to tell him of it,” the messenger explained. “My Lord seems to think him a very reliable source of information. Nor would he, apparently, have any reason to lie.”

"Come, you must tell this to my father," Legolas said to the messenger. "Stay nearby, the Crabs are getting more and more aggressive in recent years." Their patrols had lost five of their number all told in the past two years, more than they had lost in the past hundred.

The dark haired agent seemed nervous but followed without a word. As they swam through the tangles of coral, the messenger saw several eels hiss at them. The resident merpeople ignored the eels entirely but still gave them a wide enough breadth to be well outside of striking range. A few fish darted through the gaps in the coral to get further away from the predators heading towards the collapsed caves.

They hadn't been swimming for very long when suddenly several long white claws slashed at them from between the gaps in the coral. The Messenger cried out a little in shock and backed away, but already the Prince's entourage was moving to intercept the arm. One unusual red mermaid had even gotten her blade into the joint of the arm and popped the whole thing open before the outsider could register what was happening. There was a flurry of motion as thin blades that flashed in the dim light to hack into the few exposed, vulnerable spots.

The giant crab thrashed, kicking up silt from the bottom and breaking off chunks of ancient coral. Blood from the crab was a pale blue and quickly dispersed into the water around it. One massive claw was ripped clean off and hit the ground with a dull thud before the crab decided to retreat. The beast was heavily wounded but still dangerous, so the patrol allowed it to escape. "It was so big..." the messenger said, staring at the thing as it scuttled off through the coral and quickly disappeared. Though he had been prepared to dodge sea serpents, as long as a merperson stayed near to the ground when alone they were usually not a problem, so he had been ill-prepared for such an attack. 

"That was a small one," the red mermaid said as she slid her twin blades into holsters behind her tail. She was wearing a tightly formed top made of pale sharkskin that covered her breasts, went down the center of her torso in a single strip, and then wrapped around her hips where the holsters were then fastened. "Young and foolish. Without one of its claws, it will most likely be dead within the day."

The messenger could only blink at that. Several of the other mermen grappled with the giant claw for a moment, dragging it out of the crevice that it managed to land in after being severed. Once they had managed to get the piece of crab free, they hooked several long ropes made of kelp weave around the less spiked surfaces of the carapace so that they could drag it along. "Why are you taking it?" the messenger asked.

"No reason to waste food," Prince Legolas replied. "Besides, if we were to leave it... these tend to attract sea serpents. Best not invite them any closer to our lands than they already come."

Well, that did make sense, so the outsider nodded a little. With the crab claw in tow, the progress through the coral forest was slowed considerably. The messenger did notice several eels and fish started gathering nearby as they traveled but all of the wildlife seemed far too wary of the patrol to come very close. The scavengers would try to edge closer before getting spooked and darting away quickly. The agent of Imladris heard the Prince speaking to the red mermaid at the head of their group. "Unusual for one of the creatures to come so close to our paths."

"Perhaps it could not manage to find any territory of its own," she suggested. "The males do not seem to tolerate others past a certain age."

The Prince shook his head a little. "It still seems odd. My father will not be happy that another of our patrols have been attacked. We have not had such problems with the crabs since we first settled here..."

"They do not usually attack like that?" the messenger asked, slipping through the group to keep pace on the other side of the Prince.

"They have been recently," the mermaid said. "If only we could find where they are breeding-"

"Tauriel," Legolas said in a warning tone.

She frowned in unhappiness but relented without another word. Legolas turned to the messenger again. "They seem to be overpopulating somehow, and it has become a struggle to keep them in control."

Tauriel looked like she longed to say something else but didn't. Her bright green eyes were narrowed in displeasure. The messenger tried hard to not stare, but he was only partially successful. He'd never seen a red merperson before. Red was a highly recessive color. A throwback from when their people were closer to the surface and more colorful in general. The coloration was unusual to see, but she was quite lucky to have been born with red hair and scales. Not many creatures in the deep could see red, and so she was most likely even more deadly than the average merperson since she could move nearly invisibly.

The messenger noticed Tauriel looking at him and quickly averted his eyes back to where they were travelling. The last thing he really desired to do was agitate someone who seemed far better at fighting than he did. He had been selected for his speed, not his fighting prowess.

After the minor scuffle with the crab, the rest of the trip passed by without major incident. The crab claw was taken from the patrol when they reached a series of carefully sculpted corals. The white rocky protrusions had been guided to grow in a particular pattern of interwoven sections, and the thicker bases had been carefully carved with the curved motifs reminiscent of waves that all merpeople favored. Where the coral spires interlocked, balls of bioluminescence were delicately mounted so that the manufactured tunnel into the cave system was also well lit.

The messenger watched for a moment as several mermen dragged the crab claw away through a less magnificent corridor that dropped down into the cave system much more steeply than the passage they were in. He supposed that was a way into the service area of the palace or perhaps an entrance into the settlement that was also within the cave system. Seeing how he'd never been to this kingdom before he couldn't be certain which of the options was more correct. "Come," Legolas said, drawing the messenger's attention back. "I'll take you to my father."

The outsider hesitated briefly before nodding. He followed the Prince and Tauriel down the corridor of corals. The path spiraled deeper for several moments before turning into a many branching tunnel system. Biolights were held very carefully in delicate coral sconces embedded into the walls until the tunnel they took opened up even further into a massive cavern with several entrances and exits and a large coral spire in the middle. 

Several merpeople were making their way through the chamber, but they seemed to be more concerned with whatever they were doing than the sight of their Prince escorting a stranger through their caverns. The coral spire in the center of the cavern split into many branches near the top and lounging across a ledge carved into the rock was a gleaming silver merman with a crown of thin coral branches upon his head. Glimmering pale eyes fixed onto the dark haired merman, and the messenger felt himself wanting to shrink down. 

"King Thranduil," the outsider greeted with a respectful bow. This pod leader was much more intimidating than Elrond was. Thranduil was a bit larger for one and also seemed less good-humored in general.

Thranduil pushed himself up from where he had been reclining to cross the distance between them. "You are from Imladris," he stated.

"Yes. I bring a message from Lord Elrond," the dark-haired agent said, still more than just a little nervous. "Word has come through the Hobbits that the surface dwellers are beginning to explore even these depths."

Thranduil's eyes flashed. "How?"

"Some vehicle they have constructed," the messenger informed. "Apparently it is able to withstand the crushing depths in some way. They have only recently managed to reach the ocean floor, but they are planning an even greater number of trips in the near future, we hear."

"Why? Are they hunting us again?"

The messenger hesitated for a moment. "I do not think that Lord Elrond believes that to be the case... our information says that the surfacers no longer believe we exist since we have not been to the surface in so long."

"Then so long as they do not find us, I care not how they risk their lives," Thranduil said dismissively as he began to turn.

"They appeared only a few dozen miles from you," the messenger blurted out before the King could return to his throne. He almost regretted saying what he had, though, when Thranduil turned back around to fix a cold glare on him. "L-Lord Elrond thought... as the closest pod... it was prudent to-to inform you that they may... come across this place."

Thranduil straightened to his full size then. "If they come close to my Kingdom... they will regret it. Your message has been delivered... tomorrow, return to your home in your sheltered little valley. Assure Elrond, that we will deal with the surfacer threat."

The smaller male wanted to protest. The Imladris merman was fairly certain that Lord Elrond wouldn't want the surfacer's 'dealt with' despite the sometimes bloody history between the people of the surface and the people of the sea. He was also pretty sure that he had been insulted with reference to his pod’s home. But the look on Thranduil's face made him keep his tongue. There was no reason for him to personally annoy the King. He had done his job, and he was quite happy to keep his fins intact. What did he really care anyway? It wasn't as if he had any personal attachment to the surfacers. And, Thranduil wasn’t technically wrong about Imladris: it _was_ much more sheltered than Merereef. So, instead of arguing, he bowed low and allowed himself to be escorted away to what he assumed were some sort of accommodations for the night.

Legolas watched the messenger leave the main cavern before turning back to his father. Thranduil was back at his throne and casually lay back across it though his face was not as passive. "What should we do?" Legolas asked.

Thranduil was silent for a moment. "We will tighten our borders. This... vessel may be able to reach the bottom of the ocean, but it can still be destroyed, I'd wager. If it approaches our borders, we will make sure the surfacers don't make the mistake twice. We have killed sea serpents, surface dwellers too far below their precious air couldn’t be more dangerous an opponent."

Legolas shifted uneasily. "What if they come down with more than just one vessel?"

"Do not worry, Legolas. We have the advantage here. Those surface dwellers cannot even breathe underwater. The moment one crack appears in their shell they will have far bigger concerns than us," Thranduil pointed out. He reached out and brushed the back of his fingers along his son’s cheek. "We will not let them hurt us again, my son. Not ever."

"I believe you," Legolas said although he was still a little worried despite himself. He could not imagine a vessel that could make it down this far in the water. He had heard tales of land dweller vessels, and they didn't sound terribly stable or reliable; therefore, they must have done something remarkable. Who knew what else the land dwellers might have included in their foreign vessel, after all, they would have had to go through so much open water and that was the territory of sea serpents. Defeating sea snakes took entire pods of their people; Legolas couldn't imagine anyone willingly crosses open water with such a threat there.

Then again, Legolas didn't know the size of this reported vessel. Perhaps whatever they had constructed was of a magnitude large enough to deter sea serpents. Most serpents avoided attacking anything beyond the size of small whales. The monsters certainly didn't attack one another unless battling over mates. Yes, he thought, if they had constructed a large enough ship, then they might have deterred any danger from the top predator in the oceans. Legolas wasn't sure how they would have gone about making such a monstrously sized... whatever the thing was, but that must have been how they'd gotten safely to the bottom.

Legolas noticed his father's careful regard and quickly straightened and schooled his expression to a more neutral one. "Go inform the guards of my orders, Legolas," Thranduil said after a moment. "Make sure all of our people are safely within our borders."

"Of course," Legolas agreed with a slight bow before turning and going to do what he had been told. He wasn't particularly upset at getting away without a scolding for letting his mind wander.

Legolas made his way through the honeycombed rock formations until he again reached the entrance to their home. Several guards were there with tridents and harpoons carved from whale bones and tipped with the fangs from sea serpents. The serration on the teeth could rip through the toughest hide with ease and that, combined with the ability for the merpeople to unerringly hit what they aimed at, kept the sea creatures in the coral forest at bay. "By King's Command we're tightening our guard at the borders," Legolas told them. "Keep alert for anything unusual."

The guards lowered their heads in understanding. Legolas took a moment to look out over the coral tangle they called their home. The lights from their cave home were enough to illuminate the first few layers of white rock and make it nearly glow in the darkness. Most large predators stayed in the dark where their movements were better hidden from the eyes of the merpeople.

The area directly around the cave entrance had been cleared of most corals to ensure that the spider crabs and eels kept their distance. Within the clearing, an entire field of the feathery-edged tube worms had taken refuge. Fiery-colored worms sprouted like alien flowers to filter out what few particles of food floated past from when the merpeople carried food into their home. Small crabs and juvenile fish kept near the bottom among the worms where they were safer from predators, which lurked in the coral forest until they got too large to escape notice. Up above them, a handful of rainbow-lit deep sea jellyfish slowly floated by on the current with their long tendrils falling down like trails of glowing gems. Off in the distance, there was a call of a whale. Legolas tilted his head to listen to the song. A bull whale was looking for a mate. "You look quite pensive. Something on your mind?" Tauriel asked as she came up behind her Prince.

"It's nothing really," Legolas replied before turning away and swimming back inside their fortress.

"It didn't look like nothing," Tauriel pressed as she followed him.

"Surfacers destroy things... they always have. I'm worried that our home will be next."

"That sounds more like your father's opinion than yours," Tauriel said. Legolas glanced over his shoulder to narrow his bright eyes at her. "Well, it does," she defended casually. "It sounded just like him."

"Well, it's not often that he's proven wrong, you know," he pointed out. "And he remembers when we lived at the surface so I happen to think he might know a bit more than we do."

Tauriel shrugged a little as she twisted in the water to avoid a guard heading the other way. The graceful turn morphed into a roll as she straightened. "It was a long time ago we were at the surface. Perhaps things have changed."

"Perhaps, but it doesn't seem likely that we'll find out anytime soon." Legolas made a sharp turn to dive through a separate corridor to reach a large chamber carved with large sprawling scenes of the coral reefs that they had left behind long ago. There were quite a few of their people in the room lounging across different ledges, platforms, and in some cases each other. Though their home was placed close to thermal vents where the water was warmer, the deep cold of the ocean bottom still led to it being more comfortable curling up with others. Though it hadn't been necessary to cluster together when they lived in the warm waters of the surface the habit had become entirely natural to them by this point. A few lounging mermen called out to them as they swam through the chamber but Legolas only waved and moved past. The two friends made their way even deeper into the complex system of caves and tunnels.

In the lower levels of the cave system, they came to a series of carefully constructed side tubes that were covered with strings of shells and polished pebbles. Legolas went through one and then twisted to go around the turn, which blocked the view into the room beyond. There was another curtain of shells and pebbles that Legolas moved through before going to a large rock carved like the bottom half of a shell and filled with a thick layer of finely ground sand. He reclined across the sand with his head hanging down off the edge. "And now I know you were thinking about something. Most likely something unpleasant given that you're pouting," Tauriel said. "What is it, Legolas?"

The Prince made a face but decided better than to acknowledge the 'pouting' comment. He would get her back for that later. "Father's never going to let me break off now," Legolas muttered. "I almost had him convinced to let me leave the pod, but now with this threat, there's no way he'll consent to it. I'll be stuck here until I'm old and barren..."

"Oh, the drama... He can't keep you here forever," Tauriel said as she swam the short distance to casually lay across both him and the shallow bed of sand. "You're full grown, and you should start your own pod at some point."

Legolas sighed and moved one hand to cushion his head, causing his long hair to sway slightly. "Sometimes I think you're lucky, Tauriel..."

"Why's that?"

"Because you can leave whenever you want," Legolas said with a frown. "You can form a pod easily."

Tauriel frowned a little. "It's not so wonderful being alone though."

"I know... that's why I only _sometimes_ think you're lucky," Legolas said.

"We could start our own pod," Tauriel said with a grin. "It would drive your father absolutely insane."

Legolas laughed and gave her a nudge with one elbow. "It would be a bit pointless as well," he said. "Considering we wouldn't be mating at all."

"It was a thought," she said with a wave of her hand.

"Speaking of thoughts..." Legolas began. "How do you think those surfacers got down this far?"

Tauriel tilted her head. "The Messenger said there was some sort of vessel."

"Well, yes, but still... it would have to be large to not get attacked by sea serpents, wouldn't you think?" Legolas asked, eyes studying the sweeping mosaic of mermaids twisting and dancing in racing currents that decorated the ceiling.

"Perhaps not," Tauriel said with no small amount of consideration. "If they had followed the slope down and stayed to the bottom -like we do- then they might have avoided any sea serpent attention."

Legolas considered that for a moment before shaking his head. "Then they wouldn't have arrived at the bottom so near us... they would have been on the other side of the mountains."

"Maybe they came down on the other side of the ocean," Tauriel mused.

"You think they managed to cross the ocean?" Legolas asked in surprise. "You give them quite a lot of credit. Sea serpents love attacking ships and always have."

Tauriel shrugged. "They reached the bottom of the ocean, perhaps they've found the snakes' weaknesses... it's hard to say without knowing how things have changed on the surface. But it has been a long time, and the surfacers change a lot faster than we do."

Legolas scoffed a little and twisted so that he was lying on his stomach. A little sand billowed out under him before quickly settling again. Lying on his belly was a little more awkward due to the gills along his side and ribs, but he knew how to angle his body to not cut up the delicate folds on any loose sand. "They might change fast, but they do it at the expense of everyone else. Or at the expense of the world around them," he muttered as his tail flicked in agitation. "And that is what is most worrying."

The red-headed mermaid shifted again to lay down beside her friend. "It doesn't really matter. Even if they somehow manage to come across us, we won't let them ruin our sanctuary. Your father will see to that. Fighting sea serpents is not the same as fighting us."

"True... serpents are not nearly as smart," Legolas said with a smile. Another whale call echoed faintly from many leagues away. "I suppose, at the very least, they might learn that."

"If they test us," Tauriel said. "But enough of this disheartening talk. Practice with me?"

Legolas peered up at her. "With harpoons or knives?"

"Why not both? It isn't as if it'll hurt anything."

"Oh, alright. Get off me then." He gave Tauriel a little shove, and she laughed but obediently pushed away to retreat towards the door. "I still have to pay you back for that pouting comment anyway."

"You'll pay me back will you?"

"Most assuredly," Legolas said with a smirk.

Tauriel shrugged as she moved backward. "So long as you aren't moping any longer I guess I can handle that," she said lightly before flipping her tail and bolting from the room. The Prince's eyes widened before he quickly gave chase. The two of them sped through the tunnels down to the training rooms, Tauriel still laughing and Legolas calling out mock threats.


	4. Return to the Sea Floor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was a tricky chapter for me. I didn't want it to be silly enough that the very next dive that Gimli did just happened to be the one where he discovers merpeople are real but I didn't want to subject you all to repetitive dives of nothing happening either. So there's a fairly large time skip although I tried to break it up with a little bit of other things too. I hope it worked!

After the first successful venture to the ocean floor, Gimli was promptly grounded for taking out the ship and sub without permission. Plus, there were medical tests his mother insisted on because, as she said, three thousand meters of water crushing your vessel was nothing to sneeze at. The scientific community went positively crazy over the news that the bottom of the ocean had been safely reached and scoured over the data that Gimli had gotten from his dive. Gimli was getting all sorts of interview requests for science and explorer magazines and even offers of speaking about his trip, funding for further dives and even more advanced equipment came pouring in from various sponsors. There were also talks of documentaries being planned about the first trip, though Gimli was staying out of that. He’d rather be doing the dives than talking about them. Gilid, along with their father's friends, did a complete overhaul of **ORI** 's systems based on the information Gimli had recorded on his first dive. Gimli was sure they did a lot of work considering how Bofur was talking about it, but he couldn't see much change. Gimli decided to not worry about it.

Not everyone was as happy, though. The Dale Dive Company had also been angling to reach the bottom first, and it was only due to Gimli disregarding Glóin’s orders to wait that made them miss it. They'd had their own attempt slotted for the week following Gimli's impromptu dive. Bard had looked very sour at the last few conferences that Gimli had been to, and the Dwarf had avoided the old man as best he could. Other than tense relations with DDC, Gimli didn't feel too bad about snatching the title from them. They'd already been world famous for finding their own successes, Gimli figured that it was Erebor Exploration that deserved a little limelight now.

But there were a few other drawbacks to being the first of something that Gimli hadn't anticipated. His schedule was now so busy that even after he was no longer grounded, it was several more months until he could even begin to think about another dive to the bottom.

"So, when's the next dive, Gimli?" Kíli asked curiously.

"In a week," Gimli answered with a bit of a sigh. "I'd rather be on my way down already, but with how Dad reacted last time, he's not about to let me go down on my own again." Glóin had been raving at the fact that Gimli had done such a ridiculously deep dive with only his brother on the surface to help. 'Protocol is there for a reason, Gimli!' he had very nearly screamed.

Gimli knew that. He really did. But he also hadn't been able to resist. "Well, what did you expect?" Fíli asked as he tossed a small stress ball into the air and caught it absently. "If me and Kíli had tried that we'd have been skinned alive by Mother."

"That's because you idiots are always doing something reckless," Gimli replied as he leaned back in his desk chair.

"If we're reckless, you're suicidal," Kíli shot back from where he was laying on Gimli's bed on his stomach. "I mean, your obsession with going places you're likely to die, violently, is very disturbing. Everyone says so."

"Do they now," Gimli muttered as he pushed himself upright.

"They do. Plus, you're obsessed with the ocean. A very strange thing for a Dwarf. You're damned unnatural, Gim," Kíli told him cheerfully.

Gimli rolled his eyes. "Thanks for the newsflash, Kee," he said. He was perfectly well aware of how unusual it was for Dwarves to enjoy large bodies of water. But he couldn't help but find the alien world of the deep ocean terribly fascinating and beautiful for all its dangers. Nobody's opinion was going to stop him from going back down to the ocean floor and hopefully discover something else. Though they hadn't had much chance to record much data on the first trip, they'd still found some interesting things. Mostly that their assumptions on things like temperature and pressure were off. The calculations made to estimate such factors had been closer, but nobody had thought that the ocean would be as deep as it actually was. But Gimli was more than eager to return. Perhaps, he would actually see some fauna this time rather than just tracks.

The redhead looked over to the wall where his rather large reef aquarium was dominating that side of the room. He wondered if there was anything like that deep under the water. Most claimed it was impossible since there was no light to grow anything but then again, there were land plants that grew in deep caves. True, most were mosses or algae but who knew what those might develop into given enough time? He wasn't about to discount anything in that strange dark world with nearly blindingly white sand.

"So, Uncle says that you've been getting all sorts of grants for more dives," Fíli prompted. "It's that going to get Brand upset with you? I mean, him and his family had the deepest dives up until now."

"Yeah, well, Brand'll just have to live with it, because I got there first. He can still be the first _man_ to reach the bottom if he wants," Gimli replied. The Dale Diving Company had dominated the world of underwater exploration for decades. Ever since they had moved from deep lake diving (finding quite a large number of shipwrecks and even a pristine skeleton of a massive flying creature never before seen) they had been prolific in finding the best places to dive and explore. Gimli's own diving company that he'd started with his brother while being bankrolled by his father and a few of the others now had quite the reputation for reaching the floor first. There was no way that Brand could hold that sort of triumph against him.

"I don't know, I'd be a bit scared. Sigrid is a little scary," Kíli offered as he flipped through a magazine in front of him.

“I’m not afraid of Sigrid,” Gimli replied.

“Maybe you should be,” Fíli said. “Better for your health and all that.”

Gimli just rolled his eyes at his cousin. “You used to be a lot more fun,” he accused.

“That was before I broke both my legs in a stupid skiing stunt,” Fíli said. “Anyone remember the pins and plates and very long period of time in a hospital?”

“Yes, yes, it was quite traumatic,” Kíli said without looking up from his magazine. “I was a mess of tears and vicious anger against trees.” Gimli decided it was probably best to not point out how close to the truth that sarcastic remark actually was. Kíli had been beside himself with worry over his older brother’s injuries

Gimli found himself sadly disappointed on his next dive. Although the remarkable expanse of sand and water was still as impressive as it had been before, he had wanted to find some sort of life and hadn’t. He went back and scoured his tapes and pictures for anything that was actually alive and not just tracks or very convincing clumps of debris. He didn’t find so much as a sea cucumber.

Bard’s diving company started their own dives while Gimli was still in trouble and too busy from his first and had quickly surpassed the number of trips that Gimli had managed. The Dwarf was determined to close that gap and find something new the next time he dove. Gimli did, but the very interesting chasm into nothing was overshadowed by DDC finding sea stars.

Gimli was in a foul mood for months and even more determined than ever to find some sort of life down there himself. The longer it took, the more convinced he was that there was something impressive they just hadn’t seen yet. There had to be what with how much of the world was ocean floor. Whales and Giant Squid and Sea Serpents were all impressive examples of what could develop in the ocean and Gimli doubted very much that was the extent of nature’s creativity.

Almost two years after the first historical dive, Gimli completed his pre-dive checklist under his father's watchful and never quite entirely trusting eye. Even after a dozen dives to the alien world that is the bottom of the ocean, Glóin wasn't able to let his worry go. The dives were even safer now that the **ORI** was equipped with the proper electric field that protected against Sea Serpents. And also, even if it weren't, they'd never found anything that was a real danger to the sub. The most prominent animals they had seen was a few small fish and clusters of sea urchins.

Gimli checked off the last box before putting the clipboard on the hook where it was kept. Gimli grabbed up his robe and went to go get into the sub when his father suddenly stepped in front of him. "Now hold on a minute. We're going to have to call this off," Glóin said firmly.

"What? Why?"

"Because I said no solo dives and I meant it," Glóin said firmly. "It's not safe."

"It's not a solo dive," Gimli argued. Just because his usual diving partner of Bofur wasn't able to join him this time didn't mean he was diving alone.

"Who's going with you then?" Glóin demanded.

"I am," Kíli chimed in as he came out of the cabin.

Glóin stared for a moment before scowling. "You're not certified, Kíli."

"I am too."

"Since when?" Fíli asked, looking utterly bewildered.

Kíli grinned triumphantly and pointed at himself with his thumb. "Since yesterday."

“Mum’s going to kill you,” Fíli said. Glóin looked torn. He didn’t really want to get on Dís’ bad side, but he couldn’t really keep Kíli from going, and he’d very much prefer that someone be with his son.

Glóin groaned and nodded. “Alright, alright… but don’t you go and lie to your mother about how this was my idea or something.”

Kíli’s grin widened. “Would I do that?”

“You probably shouldn’t ask questions like that, Kee,” Gimli said as he climbed up to get into the **ORI**. Kíli snorted but followed Gimli into the sub without bothering to argue further. He was intensely curious about what had Gimli so excited. The video and pictures hadn’t looked like much at all so he figured he should go check it out himself. He doubted he would be all that impressed.

What felt like days of sinking later, Kíli had to admit that things were more intense than he had thought they’d be but he wasn’t sure that deep sea diving was worth all the fuss that Gimli put into it. "Wow, it's really... empty down here," Kíli said as he peered out of the small window beside him.

"There's evidence of creatures down here, so it's not entirely empty," Gimli replied as he carefully steered the sub alongside a shallow but long valley in the sand. "But just think about how big the ocean is and how few times we've managed to get down here to look for anything. Maybe if we could stay down longer, we'd have a better shot."

Kíli nodded and leaned closer to the window to try and look further out. "I suppose. But I really wanted to find life before Dale Diving did..." he grumbled. "That would have just been the best."

Gimli shook his head at his cousin. "They found sea stars. And it took them three dives to find them. I wouldn't get so bent out of shape about it if I were you, Kíli. There's plenty more things down here to find. I'm sure of it."

"Says the one that did a very dangerous solo-dive without permission just to be the first to reach the ocean floor," Kíli retorted sarcastically.

"I did do that," Gimli agreed. "And got grounded for almost half a year afterwards. Hence why you're here even though Thorin's going to pass a boulder when he hears about it."

Kíli snickered. "I'm not worried about Uncle."

"Maybe you should be," Gimli said as he moved the sub around a small pile of rocks. He had almost moved completely past the stones when the oddness of the mound occurred to him. The rocks were laying there in almost a pyramid shape, and while he figured it wasn't _impossible_ for them to have formed that sort of a pile naturally, it didn't seem likely. "Kee... this rock pile seem odd to you?" he asked.

Kíli shifted and leaned over Gimli's shoulder to better look. After a long moment to think, Kíli shrugged. "I guess it's a bit... neater than I'd expect but it is just a pile of rocks to me."

"Forming almost a perfect pyramid in the middle of a bunch of underwater sand dunes," Gimli pointed out. "How would a mound like this get here, of all places, naturally?"

"One of life's mysteries?" Kíli suggested. Gimli tossed the older Dwarrow a sour look. "What? I'm not an expert in underwater rock physics."

"We're Dwarves, Kíli!"

"Well, we aren't exactly in a cave now are we?" Gimli sighed and was about to say something in reply when a very deep pitched but loud rumble echoed through the sides of the sphere. Both young Dwarves went very still and, after a brief moment, Gimli reached over to his controls to turn off the headlights and the engine. Red emergency lights were still on within the sub, and the ocean floor was barely illuminated through the windows. The sphere slowly came to rest on the ocean floor right beside the odd rock formation.

The nearly inaudible growl continued to grow, and Kíli kept a hand hovering over the button that would electrify the outer hull. The electricity was their only defense should something happen. Ships at the surface had more precautions to deter large ocean predators, but the sub didn't have the room to devote to them. "I thought there weren't any serpents nearby," he whispered while barely moving his mouth.

"They do _move_ ," Gimli hissed back.

The two Dwarves watched through the window anxiously and strained to hear the sea serpent. There was no easy way to judge how far away the snake might be since sound travelled so well through water but just assuming the giant predator wasn't nearby was an excellent way to be eaten. The submarine sat on the ocean floor for another ten minutes.

Gimli was almost willing to say it was safe to move again when suddenly, the sub was rocked to the side. Both of the Dwarves cursed and grabbed at whatever they could to not fall. Gimli caught a glimpse of a long, scaled something thrashing beside the window. The sub was hit again, and Kíli managed to catch himself on the back of Gimli's chair. He reached over and slammed his fist into the emergency button.

The whole world lit up in a painfully bright flash and a high pitched noise, unlike anything Gimli had ever heard before filled the air. Gimli blinked many times to try and clear the after-effects of the flash from his vision even as strange clicks and whistles and moans rang through the hull. "What is that noise?" Kíli asked as he rubbed his eyes.

"Sounds like a whale or something... but smaller," Gimli said as he decided to risk turning on the headlights again.

"What like a dolphin? We're way too far down for them," Kíli pointed out.

Gimli slowly adjusted the lights of the sub to search for what was making the noise. There was a sudden plume of sand off to the side, and Gimli saw a flash of scales and a translucent fin before it was gone. However, on the edge of the light was some other scaled form lying in the sand. The sub had to turn around so that Gimli could see what it was.

Silvery scales covered a long muscular tail that went on for at least five feet in an elegant curve. Several translucent pale fins were barely visible against the white sand and seemed to have torn in several places. "We actually found a fish," Kíli breathed as Gimli pulled the sub back to see more. "I can't wait to see the look on Sig-"

The lights finally were able to adjust far enough so that they could see the entirety of the creature on the ground. "Durin's Balls..." Kíli breathed. "There's no way... they're myths..."

"Apparently not," Gimli said while staring at the merman unconscious on the sand.

He wasn't quite like what the legends said. Mainly because he was male (Gimli assumed) and not a maid. Long white-golden hair, which looked a bit darkly singed at the tips, was spread out against the sand and slightly obscuring a pretty, if vaguely alien, face. His eyes seemed just a little bigger than they should, and his jaw, cheekbones, and nose were all sharp edges. Thin lines and dots of pale blue were sprinkled across his skin, and larger patches of blue were covering the back of the merman's webbed hands. Fins were laying nearly flush against the merman's forearms. The merman was muscular and had what looked to be harnesses around his hips and on his back although the straps carefully avoided slits along the merman's side and neck. Gills, Gimli realized, and was glad when he saw the thin flaps of skin moving. The merman was alive still, even though he really shouldn't be what with how much electricity had just been sent out by the sub.

"Looks a little... off don't he?" Kíli asked.

"He's a half man half fish, Kíli," Gimli pointed out. "How would you like him to look?"

"I don't know... I guess I always pictured them more... colorful," Kíli admitted. After another moment of staring, he turned to look at Gimli. "Is he alive? That shock was supposed to stun a Sea Serpent, and it kills most sharks..."

"His gills are still moving so I'm going to say yes... probably hurt like hell though," Gimli said as he let his eyes more carefully study the merman's waist where smooth skin blended into scales. Small scales were sprinkled along the creature's hips and sides. Gimli wondered just how sharp the edges of the scales were. Some fish had smoother and flatter scales than others that almost seemed to have armor on with how rough their skin was.

Kíli hummed. "I guess we figured out your little rock pyramid mystery, Gimli. He's wearing man-made harnesses... they must have stacked the rocks that way too," he mused.

"We don't know that," Gimli pointed out.

"Oh, right, yeah, it's the _other_ highly intelligent fish species that did it," Kíli said sarcastically.

Gimli scowled at his cousin. So it was the most likely answer, that didn't mean it was the only answer. Gimli looked back at the still unconscious merman. "What are we going to do with him?" he asked aloud.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, we can't just leave him here unconscious like this! What if that Sea Serpent we heard earlier comes back? He'd be eaten," Gimli pointed out.

Kíli sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Well, it isn't like we can just go out and check on him either," he said. "Give him a nudge with the grapple arm. See if he wakes up."

Gimli nodded and used the nearby joystick to start controlling the arm that was meant to take samples. Gimli tried to be as careful as possible as he extended the metal and gave the merman's tail near his hip a small push. The merman didn't stir in the least. "That's probably not a good sign," Kíli muttered. Gimli ignored his cousin and gave the merman another tap. "Should we take him to the ship?"

"That would probably make his organs explode," Gimli said.

"We wouldn't have legends of them if they couldn't survive on the surface," Kíli pointed out.

"That's not how evolution works, Kíli," Gimli argued. "Once you adjust to a condition it isn't like you can flip a switch and go back to the other conditions just like that."

"Don't you have one of those pressure tank things in the back?" Kíli suggested. "We could put him in that."

"It's not big enough to fit him!" Gimli said. "It wouldn't even fit his tail!"

Kíli looked back down at the merman and then nodded. "Yeah, I guess he is kind of obnoxiously large... but still... what do you suggest? The only other thing I can think of is to leave him here."

Gimli didn't like that idea, but Kíli had a point. They couldn't physically fit him into a pressure tank, and bringing him to the surface was risky, to say the least. "Contact the ship... see if they can get in touch with Gandalf or someone. He might have some idea," Gimli suggested as he gave the merman another nudge.

Kíli nodded and stared at the merman another few heartbeats before going for the radio to contact Glóin. He had been excited enough to have found an animal with vertebrae first, but this was a whole new level. They had discovered (and apparently electrocuted, though that was by accident) a living myth.

Glóin thought that Kíli was joking and it took several minutes to convince him that they were very serious. He still sounded skeptical though when he said he'd try and reach Gandalf. Gimli hoped that he was able to do so quickly. The sub only had a little more air left before they absolutely _must_ head back to the surface. Gimli kept giving little nudges and examining the merman for any signs that the injured creature would wake up.

As they waited for Glóin to contact them with what to do, Gimli noticed something large and dark circling just outside of the headlights. He was willing to bet that some sort of ocean predator like a shark had been attracted to the merman and Gimli knew that if they left he would most likely be killed by whatever was circling.

When Gimli nudged the merman again, this time he noticed a faint trail of red that almost instantly disappeared into the water. "He's bleeding," he realized. Kíli was leaning over Gimli's shoulder instantly. "On his back. I guess that's what brought our friendly neighborhood shark around."

"Did the electricity burn him or something?" Kíli asked.

Gimli shrugged. "Hard to say without seeing his back but if we turn him over... however we would do that, it'd only cause more blood to get into the water probably."

"It must not be much though, or the whole area would be red," Kíli said. "That's got to be a plus."

"Yeah, I suppose," Gimli agreed.

Finally, the radio crackled to life. Kíli nearly jumped to get it. Glóin sounded somewhere between amused and surprised. "Finally got into contact with Gandalf. He says you'd better not leave him down there unprotected, and he'll be here when you get back up."

"How are we supposed to get him up with the pressure changing so much?" Gimli asked.

"He says your 'merman' should be fine with it so long as you don't rush up," Glóin answered. "And we have the hull cavity filled with water for your... friend so you can put him in there when you get up here. But you don't have the oxygen to argue about it, Gimli. Get up here."

Gimli turned back to the merman and thought hard. How exactly was he supposed to get the merman to the surface anyway? **ORI** had the one claw appendage, but he didn't really want to drag the poor thing to the surface by one arm if he could help it. After a moment, Gimli finally decided he would just have to do his best.

The bulk of the merman was challenging to move, but Gimli managed to get one appendage under the beginning of the merman's tail and the other under the merman's shoulders. Gimli carefully pulled **ORI** s arms up to try and make it less likely that the merman would slide out of the tenuous grip. Once everything was situated, they began the ascent. The would be cutting it rather close on the oxygen supply, but Gimli was more worried about the merman. Even with Gandalf saying it would be fine, his knowledge of how very much not fine other deep-sea animals were when brought to the surface made him watch the unconscious merperson nearly every second as they started up through the black.

They managed to get almost halfway back the surface before the merman began to squirm and look distressed. Gimli instantly stopped rising and watched as the pale merman struggled. He still didn't seem awake and was in pain. He was making little noises that sounded very much like the echolocation of porpoises. Slowly the merman settled again. "Maybe slower?" Kíli suggested.

"Yeah..." Gimli agreed as he waited another minute and then continued.

Hours after the **ORI** had first been slammed into, they finally broke the surface with their injured passenger. As they craned the sub back onto the boat, it became even harder to keep a solid grip on the merman. His size out of the water made him very heavy and very slippery dead weight. Gandalf was already on deck with his wide-brimmed grey hat pulled low to cut the glare from the sun and waves. Glóin was staring with his mouth near the floor as he finally laid eyes on the merman he was sure hadn't existed.

They hadn't quite managed to get **ORI** safely on the ship when the merman slipped loose however they had been close enough, and so the injured creature didn't fall to the ground too far. Gandalf was hovering near him instantly with his staff in one hand and the other gently prodding the merman's pale skin.

Gimli was impatient as they were let out of the sub even though he could see Gandalf and the merman from the front window of **ORI.** As soon as the seal of the sub was unbolted, Gimli was out and crouched beside the slightly gasping sea creature. "Is he going to be alright? We thought he was a sea serpent."

"I believe he will recover. I'm more worried about this gash along his back, however," Gandalf said as he pulled the merman up by one shoulder to expose a long red line across an otherwise flawlessly pale back. "This was not made by an animal but a blade."

"I thought I saw another tail that was darker, but it was gone too quick," Kíli supplied.

Gandalf nodded. "We need to get him back into the water before he dries too much. Once he recovers I can speak with him," Gandalf said.

"How long will it take him to recover?" Gimli asked as they all hauled the large merman over to the deck opening over the now water-filled portion of the hull.

"I don't know. Merpeople are quite sensitive to electric discharges. It may take a day or so for him to regain his bearings fully but he should regain consciousness in a few more hours, I would think," Gandalf answered as they allowed the merman to sink into the dark. Gimli was surprised when he realized little spots all along the merman glowed, especially at his hands.

"He glows..." Gimli murmured.

"Hmm? Oh, yes," Gandalf agreed. "Bioluminescence is integral to their lives on the ocean floor."

Kíli stared at Gandalf. "You've known they were down there this whole time and none of you wizards mentioned it?" he asked. Gandalf just closed the opening to the merman's temporary holding tank and decided to not answer. "Oh come on, you have to tell us something!"

"I needn't tell you anything, Kíli," Gandalf replied mildly. "I don't go telling them about what Dwarves or Men are doing so I don't have to tell you what their business is either. In fact, I haven't even seen one of them in several centuries. Much less spoken with them."

"Why's that?" Glóin asked, eyeing the hatch that had just closed suspiciously.

"Because they are not overly fond of anyone on the surface," Gandalf said. "And that is all I will say on the subject. Hopefully, our guest wakes up soon. We'll need to get him back home quickly before his pod starts to panic."

"His pod?" Gimli asked.

Gandalf sighed and studied the Dwarves around him for a moment. "Oh, very well. Pods are their family units and judging by this particular one's coloration I'd really rather not agitate the rest of his family."

"Why, what would his family do?" Glóin asked.

"Quite simply if they decided to do so, they could most likely sink this ship with ease," Gandalf said. "They've done such things before. The metal hull might put them off for a little while, but not long, I wouldn't think."

"They ain't sinking my ship!" Glóin all but roared.

Gandalf didn't look upset in the least. "Then we should endeavor to get our guest healed and back where he belongs with all due haste," Gandalf replied. "Let me know when he wakes up," he added as he started for the crew quarters.

"How will we know when he wakes up?" Gimli asked.

"Oh, I'm sure he'll let you know he's awake without any problem," Gandalf answered without turning around. "I wouldn't undo the hatch either if I were you."


End file.
